“Finished now?” she asked as a tear slipped down her cheek. He nodded wiping it away and waited, praying she’d come back to him.
“I loveyou, Ty; I have for the longest time. Yes, at first you were just the guy who protected me no matter what, who stood by me and made sure I was safe. The night I told you that all changed. I realized I’d done the dumbest thing in the world—I’d fallen in love with my best friend, and I couldn’t risk losing you. Every single word I said at our wedding was true Ty; I told you that day that you convinced me that love was worth taking a risk for and it is. I love you with all my heart and I can’t stand seeing another woman with you. I know nothing happened with her, but I was so afraid that one day you would meet someone who would steal you away from me and I’d be left with nothing but a broken heart and no best friend.”
“You’ve loved me all this time?” he asked as a smile spread across his face.
“Always Ty, in so many different ways but when you accused me of sleeping with Quinn, I thought it was because you didn’t feel the same way. That you didn’t realize the only reason I could feel so much passion was because I loved you so much, completely.”
“I’m such an idiot,” he groaned before lowering his mouth to hers and showing her how much he loved her.
She sighed happily as their lips parted and lowered her head against his chest letting the love wash through her.
“Bella, I’m sorry I made the last few weeks such hell. I saw you in Quinn’s suite in that robe, your hair and skin wet and him in a towel, and I saw red.”
“I haven’t been staying with Quinn, Tyler. I got a suite down from his because I couldn’t face Kelsey that night and what you saw I swear it wasn’t anything bad.”
“Would you tell me what it was so I can please stop imagining the worst possible scenarios?”
“Quinn knew it was my birthday and that I’d been upset since our fight. He was trying to make me feel better, to laugh and smile because he’s a friend.”
“And that took a shower to accomplish?”
She chuckled softly with a smile. “We’d been at the private pool. I was wearing a full coverage bikini under the robe. Yes, Quinn had a towel wrapped around him because his trunks were wet.”
“The pool?” he asked, his forehead lowering down to hers.
“The pool Ty. When I saw you in the doorway, I knew what you were thinking, and it hurt like hell. It was my birthday and the one person I wanted to spend it with hadn’t found me, hadn’t come after me, and then when you did you said it was done.”
“Never Bella, I wanted to do the noble thing and back off, but every time I looked out my window, I saw you. When they unveiled that billboard…I threw a vase through the living room TV.”
“Ty,youwere the one I was looking at for that photo, just as you were the one, I was looking at during that first fashion show for Angels. When I looked back as I wore that dress, I caught your gaze, and I couldn’t stop the feelings that flooded me.Youare my passion.”
“Quinn showed me some pictures from that shoot. I was so wrapped up in my jealousy that I didn’t see anything beyond the look in your eyes. When I finally saw the whole shot, I remembered it and everything else about that weekend.”
“That weekend…Ty…”
“What Bella?” he asked as she paused.
“Can you get my bag?” she said motioning to it sitting on the chair.
He reluctantly got up and grabbed it watching as she sifted through it until she pulled out a folder and handed it over. He opened it staring at the picture inside and he grinned. “My picture, I missed having this, Bella.”
“A bit late but that’s not the only picture I have for you in there.”
He glanced back down at the folder and saw the edge of another picture, one that hadn’t been in the stack Quinn gave him and he stared at it.
“Do you remember that night, Ty?” she asked slightly nervous. “It was different.”
“I wanted to pull that look from you, the one you wore during that photo,” he answered lifting her chin to kiss her lightly.
“That night, I’d hoped that it meant that you felt the same. I told myself you had to because it was different, deeper somehow and…”
“And what Bella?” he asked watching the worry play in her eyes. “Baby, I love you, whatever it is just tell me.”
“It seems that the universe finally made a decision for us,” she said pulling out the sonogram.
“Oh Bella, I know you’re pregnant. Evan was here; he didn’t tell me straight out but gave me enough of a hint,” he said, and a bit of worry hit her again. “No, baby, it’s not the reason why I told you I love you. In a small way it was but the biggest reason is because I hate not having you and I couldn’t lose you again.”
“It’s fine Ty, but that weekend is when it happened,” she said showing him the picture.